Tikur – Home Tree EP

Mystery is a virtue – one that Manchester, U.K. based singer-songwriter Tikur seems to have a handle on.

Aside from the ink-portrait on the cover of his debut “Home Tree EP“, he’s all but invisible online, letting his music make any and all impressions that need to be made. And, with a runtime that barely scratches ten minutes in length, these impressions are nearly as scarce as Tikur himself.

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With the opening track, “Chasing Waterfalls”, Tikur doesn’t even need a full minute to make two things very evident. Firstly, that his voice places him in a category with the likes of some of his most talented contemporaries and, secondly, that his songwriting places him in a category all by himself. From the sultry yet cold alternative R&B vibes of “Home Tree pt 1”, to the near-theatrical flair punctuating “Annex: Man Soon”, it’s hard to ignore the incredible uniqueness underlying Home Tree, along with the sense that style is secondary to substance, wherein Tikur seems far less concerned with the specific sounds he uses to express a feeling than he is with the feeling itself.

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The botanical title of Tikur’s “Home Tree EP” is the perfect metaphor for the qualities this debut effort possesses: a solid foundation, but with room to grow.

The short length of “Home Tree EP” is both a strength and a weakness, in that it allows for the themes of dazed, bittersweet love to come across concisely and unadulterated, while also having the unfortunate side effect of cutting some of the best ideas on the project short. Moments like Tikur lamenting “We’ve made our mistake, opened our eyes. Tumbled this far, don’t know what, don’t know why” in “Home Tree Pt. 2” atop nothing but his own harmonised backing vocals are unabashedly gorgeous, and yet frustratingly fleeting. Furthermore, Tikur’s delivery toward the end of the project seems to become more conversational and less compelling than some of the strong yet soothing vocal performances heard earlier in the EP, resulting in somewhat of an imbalance between Home Tree’s best tracks and its longest tracks.

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All in all though, “Home Tree EP” is pretty, emotional, and unconventional, making for a solid and promising debut. Tikur seems to have as much story to tell as he has talent and potential, placing him prominently on our radar, and leaving us to wonder what he’ll show up with next.